Moore, Parsi Debate For 2nd Congressional District

Twenty days from the election, Republican Congressman Riley Moore and Ace Parsi, the Democratic challenger in the second congressional district of West Virginia, met for a debate.  

WRNR in Martinsburg hosted the debate and streamed it live online. The moderators asked a series of questions and both men were given the chance to make opening and closing statements.  

One topic that came up several times was what effect the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has had on West Virginia. Moore responded that the act, passed on July 4, 2025, makes some tax cuts permanent, cut taxes on tips and other income. 

“We worked with the small business community around the state of West Virginia and around the country for that matter, to lessen the tax burden on those businesses, those job creators, the people who are actually putting their lives into the businesses in which employ so many citizens in this state, which is so, so important,” Moore said. “We also expanded the child tax credit, which was a big deal for many people in this country. No tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax on Social Security income for our retirees as well.” 

Parsi countered that the act made significant cuts to Medicaid and SNAP benefits 

“My opponent would have you believe that this was a bill just to reduce tips and social security taxes,” Parsi said. “If that were the case, believe me, I would be right there with him. This thing is gonna cut $8 billion of Medicaid over the course of the next 10 years. It’s gonna cut SNAP benefits. This is the biggest corporate tax giveaway in history, and he wants us to believe that this is a small business plan, it’s just not.” 

Parsi said if he was elected to congress, one of his biggest priorities would be repealing the One Big Beautfiul Bill. Moore said he thought if the Democrats took control of Congress, the Republicans would be on defense against an impeachment of President Donald Trump.  

Asked their takes on the Iran War, and whether it was worth it or not, Parsi and Moore had very different opinions. Parsi, who was born in Iran, noted his family fled the country when he was young.  

“Oh, absolutely not,” he said. “For a while, it was costing this country a billion dollars a day. You know how much it would be to fix the water situation in southern West Virginia? $250 million. You could have done that four times in one day for the cost of this war. We don’t have a plan. They’ve just asked for another trillion and a half dollars. Talk about budget deficits. That’s what you got. And we have emboldened the current Iranian regime which by the way I escaped so I am no fan of the Iranian regime my family still endangered because of that regime.” 

Moore responded that you can’t put a price on life.  

“I’m not for war generally. I don’t want us to be involved in conflict,” he said. “The Iranians were on the precipice of developing nuclear weapons, and the president had to make a very difficult decision in this. Has this conflict dragged on longer than I think anybody would have wanted it to? I think that’s very clear. I think one of the things though it does highlight to us though as Americans is that we must become energy independent and stop being so intertwined with Middle Eastern oil and dealing with these folks over there where it’s just constant conflict in the Middle East.”  

Trading barbs over the half hour, Parsi criticized Moore for “not being there” and not showing up for public forums. Moore in his turn suggested Parci was a professional protestor who showed up at Moore’s Morgantown office every Thursday at 11 a.m. Parsi claims he has not taken part in the demonstrations for over a year.